23. Integrating the Internal and External Structure of Metropolitan Economies: Some Initial Explorations

While there has been a great deal of attention directed to the structure and structural changes in world trade, there is a growing interest in exploring the integration of international and interregional trade. The paper focuses on the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei mega-metropolitan region (hereafter JingJinJi) through the development of a five-region model (Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, rest of China, and rest of world) by merging the China Multi-Regional Input–Output Table and World Input–Output Table. The initial explorations explore the internal and external structure of the multi-region economies to understanding the nature and strength of internal interdependence, using measure of feedback effects, fields of influence and hypothetical extraction, and average propagation lengths. The second section of the paper examines the nature and strength on interregional income formation employing the Miyazawa framework. We conclude that the flow of goods and labor inside JingJinJi is stronger than that in the outside area. And there is a close interdependence between Beijing and Tianjin within the JingJinJi metropolitan area.